"Homage to Slaves" is a series of oil paintings on marble which was painted after reading the book "Slave Testimony" edited by the late John B. Blassingame.  This book touched me deeply and generated 50 imaginary portraits of those individulas who touched me the most. When in exhibition, each painting is displayed alongside the written passage to better reflect the content of the work.  It is my intention to depict the beauty and strength of the slaves who wrote the Testimonies and I chose Marble as my surface because it related to the subjects depicted.  Marble has three different and imporant elements; it has a physical presence, a unique natural beauty and is composed by layers of time, which are clearly visible throughout its surface.  For me, the exposed veins of the marble in my paintings represent the universal similarities which give us form.  They feel like a fusion between life and matter.  To paint on marble is like painting on Earth, a metaphor of Life itself.  Our humanity, our past and our present, all can be interpreted on the surface of marble.  It shows how we are all the same.